We celebrated Arbor Day in the Philippines (which happened to be almost my birthday) on June 25, 2014 because there is a law that declares the 25^th of every June as Arbor Day.  So after class, I went with my Uncle and Mom to the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Nature Center which was a first time for me.

We went to the park behind some offices where there was a stage set-up and tables and no chairs. There were lots of fallen tree trunks but neatly arranged so I think they were part of the décor. There was lots of food (like they knew I was celebrating my birthday) mostly gourmet Philippine food.  Since it was warm, I went straight for the ?dirty ice cream? – that?s what they call it, but it?s not really dirty. It?s clean, but it is sold in little carts along the sidewalks.

The program began at 5pm when the VIPs arrived. The Undersecretary of Department of Environment and Natural Resources was there and the organizers from the Chamber of Mines. Since it was Arbor Day, we were celebrating the planting of the 20 millionth tree under a greening program of the Chamber of Mines. The 20 millionth tree was planted within three years in 40,000 hectares of land all around the Philippines. They chose the Toog tree which is also called Philippine Rosewood for the 20 millionth tree.

During the program, the emcee explained all about the greening program. Then the Chamber President welcomed everyone and thanked those who helped make the 20 million trees a reality. The Department Undersecretary spoke about other Arbor Day activities going on around the country including the mangrove rehabilitation to help protect the country?s coastal areas in times of super typhoons. The highlight of the program was the planting of the 20 millionth tree! We ended with a concert by a band that is known to be advocates of environmental protection.

Arbor Day was Our Birthday or that?s what I thought I heard the emcee say.  Haha! Anyway, it was a great way to celebrate my birthday one day in advance!